NBN website ‘glitch’ gets Blue Mountains connection dates wrong

A “glitch” in the NBN website last week left Lower Mountains residents fearing their connection dates had been delayed by a year.

Fibre-to-the-curb (FTTC) connection for Lower Mountains towns is due by June 2018 but the website had mistakenly changed the schedule to mid-2019.

“It appears there was a glitch on our website which meant incorrect information was posted on the rollout dates for these areas – the Lower Mountains FTTC build is still scheduled to go live around the middle of next year,” NBN public affairs manager Philippa Perry told the Gazette on December 4.

“NBN Co will be updating our website to reflect this within the next week or so. Construction work such as pit remediation has already commenced in these areas.”

Federal Member for Macquarie Susan Templeman said the “so-called ‘glitch’ is typical of the NBN’s level of consumer-care – they can’t even keep the information accurate”.

“People use the NBN site to check availability and make subsequent decisions on house purchases, relocations and business decisions,” she said.

“For instance, how many people have decided not to move to this part of the Mountains based on the wrong data? Is it really too much to ask that, at the very least, NBN are vigilant in ensuring information is up to date.”

Ms Templeman was quick to attack the government when it appeared the NBN rollout had been delayed.

She said the delay was yet another blow for the Lower Mountains and appeared to affect mainly Blaxland and Warrimoo residents.

“This is a Liberal Government that doesn't care about the problems it is causing small businesses, students or anyone who aspires to a 21st century broadband service,” she said.

Blaxland resident Tony Kleu, a freelance journalist who depends on reliable and fast internet for his work, was appalled when he thought the NBN had been delayed.

“When the roll-out was brought forward to next April I started planning to do all my work from home,” Mr Kleu said.

A spokesperson for Federal communications minister Mitch Fifield said just 94 premises in the Macquarie electorate were connected to the NBN after two terms of Labor government.

“Today, under the Coalition’s faster, more affordable rollout, the NBN is available to 34,000 premises in Macquarie and more than 20,000 premises have an active service. The rollout is more than halfway complete in Macquarie… Susan Templeman knows Labor’s rollout plan wasn’t worth the paper it was written on.”